The Importance of Sons: Chronicles of the House of Valois
The Importance of Sons focuses on Duchess Anne of Brittany and Countess Louise d’Angoulême, and their open rivalry over who would produce a son to rule France. To bring peace to her beloved Brittany, 15-year-old Anne was rushed into marriage with Charles VIII despite annulments necessary on both sides, but in the few years before being widowed at age 21, her multiple pregnancies failed to produce any living heirs, a fact which made her question the validity of her marriage. Meanwhile, Louise had a son she was convinced by prophecy would one day be king. Anne’s marriage contract held a clause indicating if she considered marrying again, it must be to a king of France. Hence her marriage to Charles’s cousin, Duke Louis d’Orléans (Louis XII). An annulment from Louis’ detested wife was required for Anne to step in, and Louise wasn’t best pleased that Anne could still produce an heir.
Keira Morgan’s novel is complex, packed with historical detail of court life, royalty and dynastic relations. In my first foray into 15th-century Renaissance France, I was thankful for the character list, which I referred to often, sometimes slowing the narrative, but, without doubt, clarifying ‘the importance of sons’! Anne exhibits maturity far beyond her years and is a shrewd, politically skilled, sensitive woman who gracefully accepts her role in life, including a philandering husband whose lifestyle probably cost him his young life. Juxtaposed against the scheming Louise, Anne’s demeanour is above reproach as she negotiates her world of intrigue and double-dealing. Although a ruler in her own right from a very early age, Anne’s autonomy was hampered by the necessity to create heirs; however, she was instrumental in the unification of Brittany and France. Her tragic pregnancies did indeed become Louise’s reward with the ascension of her own son, François I.
